Chandigargh, September 11th 2006: WITH an aim to increase the research done by faculty at the Punjab Engineering College (PEC), Sector 12, and to enhance the culture of Research and Development (R&D) at the institute, a number of steps have been initiated.

According to the Dean, Research and Planning, Dr Arun Lal, proposals for in-house R&D have been invited under a Rs 1.2 crore scheme. The project presentations will be made on September 15 and will be judged by experts from the industry.

Around four to five projects will be selected to receive internal funding. The emphasis, Dr Lal informed, will be on market-oriented research which is why industry experts have been roped in.

In addition, the institute is also organising technical workshops of one or two-week duration where faculty from PEC and other colleges get a chance to interact with people from the industry.

The institute has also begun setting up research facilities like a virtual instrumentation lab for around Rs 30 lakh and a CAD/CAM lab for Rs 15 lakh. In addition, the institute funds trips abroad once in three years and one trip within the country every year when faculty members are invited to present their papers at national and international conferences.

The institute also bears charges up to 75 per cent for the purchase of laptops by faculty as well as 75 per cent of the membership fee for technical organisations such as the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).

According to Dr Lal, the success of the steps being taken are now becoming evident with the number of consultancy projects given to the institute increasing from 18 in 2004-2005 to 62 in 2005-2006.

Some of the projects the faculty are currently working on include those from the UT Department of Science and Technology, the Snow and Avalanche Studies Establishment (SASE) and the Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory (TBRL).